The Grifters

Director Stephen Frears' tense adaptation of Jim Thompson's novel The Grifters was one of a number of revival film noirs in the first half of the '90s. Updating the setting to contemporary Los Angeles, the film follows a trio of con artists who are intent on out-foxing each other. Roy Dillon (John ...more

Of the several movies made in the 1990s that mined the original material of writer Jim Thompson, Stephen Frears' The Grifters was easily the best. Adapted for the screen by noted crime novelist Donald Westlake, the intelligent, knowing script is a major strength. Like Frears' previous film, Dangerous Liaisons, The Grifters is full of smart, character-driven deceit and intrigue. It's essentially a morality play, but, in keeping with the material's film noir feel, its morals are not simple, and ...more